The Best Heating Pad

Updated October 3, 2018

We’ve added more context about heating pad safety, plus long-term test notes from people who’ve used our picks for more than a year.

Your guide

Kevin Purdy

After sorting through hundreds of reviews for dozens of look-alike models, interviewing a doctor, a safety expert, and a journalist obsessed with back pain, and then testing seven top contenders, we’d recommend Pure Enrichment’s Pure Relief XL King Size Heating Pad for those who want rapid, reliable heat—dry or moist. It warms up quickly and has twice as many granular heat settings as other pads we researched and tested, its backlit-display-possessing controller is easier to grasp and operate, its power cord is easier to pop out when you need to wash the pad’s cover, its two-hour auto shut-off function can be disabled, and testers preferred the overall feel of this pad to all others we assessed.

Our pick

Buying Options

A quality electric heating pad is safety-certified, quickly reaches and maintains desired temperatures, and is equipped with an auto shut-off function as well as a machine-washable cover. The Pure Relief ticks every box plus offers added comfort and conveniences such as a plush—but not excessively sweat-inducing—cover, six heat settings, a grip-friendly controller with a backlit display, and a storage bag. It’s also covered by a five-year warranty.

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Runner-up

Buying Options

If the Pure Relief is unavailable or jumps significantly in price, Sunbeam’s King Size XpressHeat is essentially the same heating pad (and appears to be made by the same manufacturer). Like our pick, this pad offers six levels of heat, a comfortable cover that can be machine-washed, and a backlit controller. Compared with our pick, the cover texture, plug, and controller shape are different on the XpressHeat. It also sounds more “crinkly” when bent or adjusted, according to some testers. It’s a top-rated, best-selling product from Sunbeam, the most prominent heating pad brand in the US and, like our pick, is also warrantied for five years.

I’ve tested and written about home goods and other products for The Wirecutter since 2013 and have researched seemingly inscrutable products like paper towels, dehumidifiers, steam mops, and tax software. I’ve used heating pads myself in dealing with the lingering pain from two knee surgeries and a lower-back injury.

Who this is for

People use electric heating pads to relieve muscle pain associated with menstrual cramps, arthritis, injuries, and other ailments. Heat increases blood flow where applied, helping to dilate blood vessels, improving circulation. The increased blood flow to a treated area can help soothe muscular cramping, spasms, aches, and soreness.

Putting a heating pad on a new injury (generally within 72 hours) can worsen pain-causing inflammation.1 Frequent, prolonged, or otherwise improper use of heating pads has been associated with burns and other ailments. You should consult a doctor before treating yourself with cold or heat.

How we picked and tested

They’re very similar in looks, size, and price, but small differences between heating pads can add up to a significantly better experience. Photo: Michael Hession

From expert interviews, reading hundreds of reviews, and talking to people who regularly use heating pads, we determined our criteria for picking out electric heating pads worth testing. (For this guide, we did not consider microwaveable pads or hot water bottle-type devices.) We considered top-rated, UL- or ETL-certified heating pads that offer:

Three or more heat levels

Quick heat-up

Dry and moist heat options

Easy machine washing of covering

An automatic shut-off timer

An intuitive controller (one you could operate in the dark) with a long power cord

These criteria left us testing seven models. We assessed each heating pad as follows:

Applying each pad to gauge its overall feel, ease of use, and any noise it made when adjusted

Evaluating the heat-up speed, heat dispersion, and average temperatures of each pad at given heat settings

Testing the auto-off functions of each pad

Washing and drying each pad cover

Folding and storing each pad

Monitoring each pad using a thermal-imaging camera as they heated up

We used a thermal imaging camera to analyze each heating pad. Every model we tested has “hot spots” across their surfaces. Photos: Kevin Purdy

Our pick: Pure Enrichment’s Pure Relief XL King Size Heating Pad

Photo: Michael Hession

Our pick

Buying Options

The Pure Relief XL King Size Heating Pad was the consensus favorite pad of our testers and offers features found in no other heating pad that’s similarly priced. The smooth and plush sides of its cover were our testers’ overall favorite, and while it makes a small bit more crinkling noise when bending than some, it’s reasonably quiet. The Pure Relief’s six levels of heating (between 105 and 140 degrees Fahrenheit) fall within the same general range as other pads’ minimum and maximum levels (give or take five degrees Fahrenheit) but offer the smallest gaps between temperatures. This addresses a common complaint among our panel of heating pad users that “medium is too low, but high is too hot” and makes it easier to find the right temperature and adjust than pads with a narrower range of options and larger jumps between settings.

The Pure Relief’s controller is simple to use: you turn the heat up or down, turn the auto-off timer on or off, and turn the pad on or off. Other pads make you cycle through settings (such as off/low/medium/high), making it more likely that you’ll accidentally leave the pad on or just making you have to click multiple times to simply go down one level. The Pure Relief’s LCD display has big numbers and backlighting, a change from the tiny red lights and lettering on most controllers. The Pure Relief cord stays firmly plugged into the pad and will not come loose, unlike some pads we tested. Its cover dried faster than most pads after washing, it comes with the minor convenience of a storage bag, and it is warrantied for five years—though we will be watching this model for long-term reliability.

The texture of the Pure Relief was the overall favorite of all testers who used it. Photo: Michael Hession

The Pure Relief’s controller has an LCD display with large, backlit numbers, and easy power/timer/up/down controls you could use in the dark. Photo: Michael Hession

The texture of the Pure Relief was the overall favorite of all testers who used it. Photo: Michael Hession

The Pure Relief looks fairly discrete for a heating pad and could blend into a typical couch-and-blanket setup. Photo: Michael Hession

The Pure Relief’s controller has an LCD display with large, backlit numbers, and easy power/timer/up/down controls you could use in the dark. Photo: Michael Hession

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Our testers preferred the feel of the Pure Relief’s plush side, as it seemed gentle against the skin but not, like another pad, so dense that it would cause excessive perspiration or feel “like a sweaty pillow,” one said. One tester thought the Pure Relief made louder crinkling noises when bent, but others found it quieter. While the Pure Relief is a bit more fussy in cleaning instructions than other pads (wash in cold water on delicate cycle, dry on low heat or on a line), it dried out more fully on a line than other pads within a couple hours.

My wife and I have used the Pure Relief pad for occasional muscle pain, as well as for supplemental couch or chair heat on frigid nights in Buffalo, New York. Another Wirecutter staffer uses the Pure Relief for night and morning back pain relief. All of us find the lowest heat setting to suffice for these needs, and rarely explore above level two.

Flaws but not dealbreakers

The Pure Relief makes a bit more noise when folded than our runner-up pick. Its cover also requires more gentle washing than others we tested: washing on the delicate cycle with cold water and drying on the delicates cycle rather than the “medium” most pads can tolerate. While its plug stays firmly connected to the base of the pad, its locking tabs could be tough to disengage for people with large hands or pain in their fingers.

The Pure Relief has maintained an average above four out of five stars after more than 4,500 reviews by verified purchasers since September 2016. After noticing an uptick in negative reviews, specifically citing nonfunctioning units, during early fall 2018, we contacted the company. Terry Cox, speaking for the heating pad’s maker, Pure Enrichment, said negative reviews were increasing because overall sales increase as winter approaches, but the percentage of negative reviews remains roughly the same. This matches the numbers for Pure Enrichment's storefront, SKUniverse. Cox said Pure Enrichment will provide money-back returns for nonfunctioning or underperforming pads 60 days beyond Amazon’s standard 30-day return period; customers can email help@pureenrichment.com to start the process. This is in addition to Pure Enrichment’s five-year warranty that covers defects, including failure to heat up.

Runner-up: Sunbeam’s King Size XpressHeat

Photo: Michael Hession

Runner-up

Buying Options

If the Pure Relief pad is unavailable or becomes more expensive than Sunbeam’s King Size XpressHeat heating pad, we recommend the latter model. It is nearly the same pad: the Xpress Heat has six heating settings, a very similar texture on both sides, a controller with a backlit LCD display and an identical button layout to Pure Relief, plus the same warranty. (The Pure Relief is likely a less-expensive “clone” of the more-established Sunbeam’s pad.) We like the clip-in cord plug on the Pure Relief better than the plugs on models that make you apply significant force to separate the pad from its cord or those that come loose too easily. We also found the rounded controller easier to hold in our hand than the square-edged models of other pads. The Pure Relief’s carrying tote, while nothing special, at least provides a properly sized means of storage. One tester thought the XpressHeat was notably louder when crunched or folded than the Pure Relief. Sunbeam claims this pad heats up “three times faster” than other models, but it’s not something we noticed in testing.

The texture of the XpressHeat is similar to that of the Pure Relief XL, though some testers found that it sounded more crinkly when bent or folded. Photo: Michael Hession

Much like the controller on our pick, the King Size XpressHeat has a backlit LCD display with large numbers, four control buttons, and a two-hour auto-off timer. Photo: Michael Hession

The texture of the XpressHeat is similar to that of the Pure Relief XL, though some testers found that it sounded more crinkly when bent or folded. Photo: Michael Hession

Like our pick, the XpressHeat looks more like a typical blanket than health-care equipment. Photo: Michael Hession

Much like the controller on our pick, the King Size XpressHeat has a backlit LCD display with large numbers, four control buttons, and a two-hour auto-off timer. Photo: Michael Hession

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Four Wirecutter staffers have used the Sunbeam King Size XpressHeat for backaches, menstrual cramps, and occasional cat appeasement, two of them for at least two years. None have had any problems with its function.

How to (safely) use a heating pad

All of the electric heating pads we tested are certified by UL, an independent organization that evaluates the safety of myriad materials and consumer products. We spoke to Joel Hawk, principal engineer manager with UL’s small-appliances division, about what that means for the safety of someone using certified heating pads. UL extensively tests the temperature regulation of each pad it certifies, along with the fail-safes built into the pads that cause them to stop working rather than overheat or allow the inside of a heating pad to become exposed (UL simulates overheating by covering the pads with heavy felt). Each pad is flexed, twisted, bunched, and squished, and has its cord yanked out thousands of times in UL’s laboratories, Hawk told us.

Problems can arise from exposing materials to the high end of a heating pad’s temperature range—some clothing, furniture, or other materials react poorly to 140 degrees Fahrenheit. But some public perception of the dangers of a heating pad may come from much older models of electric blankets, Hawk said, which lacked the modern electronic controls of today’s equipment. We will note that every heating pad we researched had at least one review alleging an incident in which the pad “nearly” or “could have” started a fire. Heat is an elemental, intimidating force, and you should always be aware of what your heated pad is on or near.

Both of our picks have a maximum two-hour automatic shut-off function, which is enabled by default when you turn on the pad. You can turn it off on all of our picks, but an expert we spoke with advised that you do not (nor should you fall asleep with a pad on you). Sports medicine specialist Michael S. Freitas told us that continuous exposure to elevated heat leaves a person unable to register the damage they’re doing, creating a “hot tub effect,” Freitas said, similar to how laptops can burn laps. Beyond immediate injury, journalist Cathryn Jakobson Ramin noted that lying or sitting for extended periods of time with a pad on can run counter to the best practices for healing injuries. If you have any doubts about using a heating pad with any condition, check with a doctor.

The competition

Sunbeam’s Microplush King Size Heating Pad earned a “sweaty pillow” comment from one tester. Another thought it was simply too much fabric for close skin contact, “like how shag carpet feels on your knees.” With four levels of heating, it can suit most needs, but our pick and runner-up were strongly preferred.

The Sunbeam 4-in-1 Heating Pad, also sold as the Select-a-Cycle, has three temperature-cycling modes, “Rapid,” “Interval,” and “Wave,” which none of the experts we consulted could imagine a practical use for. You have to click past the three modes to get to the three heat settings, which is annoying. Plus it’s a pad that costs more than our picks and is available at fewer stores.

Both the SoftHeat MaxHeat Washable Heating Pad and the Sunbeam King Size Heating Pad have a thin blue fabric around their sealed heating elements, and both covers feel like disposable hospital garments. The cover texture catches on rough skin. It’s not that bad if you need a pad for a one-time use, but all the other pads we tested felt better. And the Sunbeam King Size cover cannot be machine-washed.

Battle Creek’s Thermophore MaxHeat Deep-Heat Therapy pad is not like the others: it’s heavy (it weighs more than 3 pounds, whereas most pads weigh 1 pound), has a canvas cover, and automatically shuts off after 20 minutes if you don’t adjust its switch. It’s meant to be draped around you while lying down rather than propped lightly on a shoulder or behind a back. It has a long run of good reviews but costs almost twice as much as our pick.